Superstar Ed Sheeran is bringing his 206-date Divide world tour back to our shores — and it is set to make a fortune.

Industry figures reckon Ed, 27, will gross £1.6million per gig, and given his minimal stage production and that he plays without a band, most is destined for his pocket.

He is expected to bank an incredible £100million from the shows, which should help him surpass Adele to become the UK’s richest music star under 30.

Ed kicks things off with four shows at the Etihad Stadium, then stops by Glasgow and Newcastle before a stint at Wembley Stadium. His four nights there is a feat beaten by only one other individual artist — Michael Jackson played seven shows there 30 years ago. Ed bids us farewell after four gigs in Cardiff from June 21.

It is not just on tour where Ed is in demand. His worth will continue to rise in the studio, too, given the fact EVERYBODY wants to work with him and get their mitts on one of the songs. Whether it is up-and-coming UK grime acts, US pop divas or rock royalty in the form of Mick Jagger, Ed is the go-to man for a hit.

In a nod to Manchester City, whose Etihad home hosts the singer’s first batch of UK dates, Ed has become the Pep Guardiola of music.

Just like the City manager does on the pitch, Ed guarantees success with every tune he writes, securing his status as the most powerful artist in the pop.

Ed is the go-to man for a hit - here in concert with Stormzy at the O2 Academy Brixton last year

The stats do not lie. Five No1 singles, 21 Top Tens and three No1 albums — the last of which, Divide, dominated the singles chart after its record-breaking release last March. It is still No6 after 63 weeks.

Add to this his awards haul, which includes four Grammys, five Brits and six Billboard Music gongs, Ed is dominating his field.

Not bad for a guy who ten years ago was denied a place on ITV musical drama Britannia High, which followed a group of teens trying to make it at a performing arts school.

Former Strictly judge Arlene Phillips, who co-created the series, did not exactly lap up Ed’s dance routine to Justin Timberlake song Like I Love You. The audition has since gone viral.

Ed was first noticed on the grime scene - pictured with grime star Stormzy, right - after being denied a place on ITV musical drama Britannia High

Ed was a student at the National Youth Theatre at the time but did not take Arlene’s snub to heart. He focused on his dream of becoming a superstar by connecting with powerful figures in various genres, which has helped helped build fan bases in each sector.

Arlene could not have predicted this young ginger singer would one day be collaborating with Eminem and Beyonce.

Ed was first noticed on the UK grime scene, playing low-key gigs, showing off his rapping skills and slowly building up a following in the genre which has remained to this day.

One of his early albums, called No5 Collaborations Project, featured songs with fellow rising artists Wiley, Dot Rotten and Wretch 32. Ed later teamed up with Stormzy on Shape Of You, but it was his early grime material that caught the attention of his first of many unlikely A-list allies — Jamie Foxx.

The US actor invited Ed to perform on one of his open-mic nights after Ed turned up to his LA radio station asking to showcase his music.

Link-ups with One Direction and Justin Bieber, pictured right with Ed, — two acts with the biggest global followings of their time — was the real power play

In 2011, after every major record label tried to sign him, he released his first studio album through Atlantic, even though bosses there offered him the lowest advance, believed to be around £40,000. Simply titled +, the record went straight to No1.

Thanks to huge hits including The A Team and Lego House, Ed was starting to edge into the mainstream, much to the satisfaction of journalists and music reviewers who charted his progress from his early days.

I remember speaking to Ed during a gig in the London Bridge branch of Nando’s. Even then he was full of great anecdotes, recalling how he used to catch up on sleep while gigging in the capital by endlessly going round on the Tube’s Circle Line.

The success of + helped him make around £2million in 2012, a year before close pal Taylor Swift helped him really break America.

The US singer, who has an eye for young music talent, invited Ed to join her infamous “squad” and her mammoth Red Tour, having earlier collaborated on her No7 single Everything Has Changed.
His friendship with Taylor did not just boost his profile, it did wonders for his love life.

Speaking last year about the benefits of being surrounded by Taylor’s hot pals, he said: “I was this 22-year-old, awkward British kid going on tour with the biggest artist in America, who has all these famous mates.

“It was very easy. I would often find myself in situations just kind of waking up and looking over and being like, ‘How the f*** did that happen?’.”

Ed continued to collect famous pals, including Friends star Courteney Cox and footballer Frank Lampard. He played at the former Chelsea midfielder’s wedding to TV host Christine in 2015.

The ginger singer is dominating his field - and his awards haul, four Grammys, five Brits and six Billboard Music gongs, proves it

Ed’s second album x, released in 2014, featured hits including Thinking Out Loud and Photograph, increasing his standing. But link-ups with One Direction and Justin Bieber — two acts with the biggest global followings of their time — was the real power play.

The collaborations, including Bieber’s worldwide hit Love Yourself, pushed Ed’s fortune up to the £30million mark by the end of 2015.

It was around this time Ed started a romance with his childhood sweetheart Cherry Seaborn, a talented hockey player now based in the US.

He also quit social media in 2015 at the end of his last world tour, telling his 16million Twitter followers and 5.5million Instagram subscribers that he was fed up of “seeing the world through a screen”.

Ed Sheeran made an MBE by the Prince of Wales at an Investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace

Ed added: “If you love me, you will understand me buggering off for a bit,” before reassuring fans a third album was on its way. Divide duly arrived with a bang in March last year, swamping the Spotify charts and sparking more big-name collaborations.

Liam Payne and Rita Ora used an Ed song to launch and relaunch their solo careers, while he continues to help acts in other genres, including country duo The Shires.

He also launched his own label, Gingerbread Man Records, to help rising talent.

The more established Robbie Williams begged the singer for a track for his album The Heavy Entertainment Show.